Inside Man: How Joshua Lieberman Became the Brooklyn Nets’ Go-To Real Estate Agent

You won’t find  Joshua Lieberman ’s name on the back-office org chart of the Brooklyn Nets. But over his 12 years as a leading agent at Douglas Elliman, he has worked to become something of an auxiliary player within the NBA franchise. By providing a comprehensive package that combines maximal client service, discretion and local expertise and guidance on living in New York City, Lieberman has established himself as the go-to residential real estate agent for anyone within the Nets organization—from a  just-drafted player  to a  newly-hired physiotherapist —looking to buy, sell or rent a home in this uniquely dynamic market. “I approach it as if I’m the real estate arm of their business,” he said. “In turn, the organization trusts me to essentially onboard its employees, get them comfortable and acclimated to living here. And when they are ready to sell or move on when they are traded to another team, I’m there to make sure their properties are properly marketed and sold or quickly rented. It truly is a full service.” One Deal at a Time The founder and head of  The Lieberman Team  and member of Elliman’s  Sports & Entertainment division  first became acquainted with the Nets in 2014 through his friendship with the organization’s then-general manager. With that critical foot in the door and the key introductions that came with it, Lieberman worked methodically to earn trust and deliver results. “I had to make a name for myself and go above and beyond, like I would do for any client,” he recalled. “It happened very organically, one deal at a time.” It helped that the first of those deals involved helping Nets forward Thaddeus Young to purchase a condo in 2015, which  ESPN noted  was the first time that a Brooklyn Net had become a Brooklynite. Among the first things he did was to create a “Welcome to New York City” real estate guide to help educate and acclimate his newly arrived clients. Beyond giving them an overview of different neighborhoods, services and attractions in proximity to the Barclays Center arena and the team’s practice facility, the guide highlighted the city’s unique financial and cultural dimensions. “For most of these people moving from the west coast or the Midwest, New York City is completely foreign—it really can be a culture shock,” he said. “They don’t understand the market. They don’t understand the inventory. They don’t understand the turnaround time. They need to be able to trust in and rely on someone who really understands the ins and outs and can explain the financial implications of moving here.” VIP, from A to Z Over the years, Lieberman has developed this educational primer into a full-blown luxury service that includes an in-depth, formal intake process and daylong tours of listings via chauffeured vehicles. “We make sure they’re treated like VIPs from beginning to end,” he said. “And when I’m in the car with them, we’re often meeting for the first time in person, so I’m able to get to know them. It’s a really nice way to break the ice, make them feel comfortable and get them excited about moving to New York.” Whether the client is an established All-Star looking to buy in a luxury new development or a just-out-of-college rookie player looking for a $4,000- to $5,000-a-month one-bedroom rental, Lieberman guarantees the degree of privacy and discretion that his many celebrity clients expect. The high-touch service extends to the Nets organization itself, with continuous communication and responsiveness to “keep everyone in the loop and make sure all the i’s are dotted and the t’s are crossed throughout the process.” And because mid-season trades and other unplanned changes are routine in professional sports, Lieberman and his team are well-practiced and ever-ready to help clients buy, sell or rent on short notice—even within a week. “We know how to react quickly,” he said. “We’re lucky that we’ve been in this business for so long that we have the network of other players coming in or going. There have been times when there’s a trade and the budgets align so that we can seamlessly move an incoming client into a just-vacated home without even putting it on the market.” It all adds up to a fine-tuned model designed to create clients-for-life—a model that Lieberman aims to scale and expand to other NYC sports franchises with the help of the S&E division. “Douglas Elliman already has an amazing brand and story to tell,” he said. “Having the Sports & Entertainment division behind me, supporting me with marketing and branding, gives me a powerful advantage as I continue to grow my business.”